Travel News

BY Joseph Olaoluwa

The National Coordinator of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Dr Sani Aliyu, has said the country cannot afford to conduct free COVID-19 tests for passengers arriving into Nigeria.

Aliyu, who made this statement on Saturday during a webinar organised by the Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, explained that the country would run out of test kits if it chooses to test the 5,000 to 7,000 persons who come into the country daily.

For this reason, he said, travellers must pay for the full cost of COVID-19 testing.

The coordinator explained that the kits were expensive and testing everyone was not sustainable.

 He said, “The main reason why we can’t test people is due to the number of passengers we get into Nigeria. It is nothing compared to Ghana or other countries. We get between 5,000 and 7,000 passengers when we fully open the airport every day. There is a slightly smaller number that goes out.

“At the moment, we have done just half a million tests. The tests are very expensive as we all know. PCR tests are very expensive in Nigeria and even in developing countries. At any point in time, we have 300,000-400,000 test kits available. The majority of these test kits are donated by our donors. We have some we have bought. We are in the process of buying about another half a million or so.”

He added, “If we were to take up the travel testing, we will run out of test kits in no time, believe me. We will be tripling the number of tests every day and it is not sustainable. Even in developed countries, like the United Kingdom for instance, yes you do testing and it is free under the National Health Service but it is not for travel purposes.

“The moment you say travel, they would ask you to go private. We have had colleagues that had paid £250 for a test in the UK before coming from the private sector. We are trying as much as possible to push the cost of PCR down for the private laboratories but one of the things we have said is that they will not be allowed to double-dip.

“They will not serve the public sector and private sector. They have to do it only within the travel sector side and the more laboratories we have coming onto the portal, the easier it will push down the cost. I am very sure the cost will come down.”

The PTF Coordinator listed Lagos as the only one charging N50,000, noting that others were charging between N36,000 and N39,000 for testing.

National Coordinator of Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Dr Sani Aliyu has said more than 27,000 passengers from abroad came into Nigeria during the COVID-19 Pandemic despite the strict procedures following the reopening of Lagos and Abuja Airports.

Speaking at a townhall webinar meeting organised by Nigerians in Diaspora Commission for Nigerians coming into the country, Dr Aliyu pointed out that of the 27,000 passengers, 18,000 of them came in through Muritala Muhammed International Airport Lagos while the remaining 9,000 came in through Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja.

He also revealed that public laboratories are not allowed to conduct free testing as the Federal Government cannot afford it and it is not sustainable, as, “it is not something that government can afford” so as not to run out of test kits.

While lauding NIDCOM for living up to expectations in coordinating Diaspora concerns on the protocols put in place, he stated that the “advantage of testing before boarding is to stop people with Covid-19 from moving to Nigeria as the test is expected to be done 120 hours maximum before boarding.”

By Wole Oyebade

• Travellers relive harrowing experiences • Airlines, stakeholders seek uniform procedure • FG promises to tackle challenge

One month after international flights resumed in Nigeria, allegations of fraud and test certificate racketeering trail foreign air travels.

Flights in and out of the country had been suspended for months as part of measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

Shortly before the ban was lifted, the Federal Government declared COVID-19 PCR test certificate and negative results were mandatory requirements for exit or entry into the country.

But it is alleged that some government and laboratory officials make illegal earnings off the procedure by manipulating test results.

Arriving passengers have complained that the dedicated online travel portal for pre-arrival payment for PCR test in Nigeria has not been working. They are therefore at the mercy of extortionists, multiple payments for tests, and officials negotiating negative status for a fee.

Apparently aware of the complaints, the Federal Government has pledged to fix the online platform to ease inconveniences travellers face. The Coordinator, Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Dr. Sani Aliyu, assured travellers of ongoing work to improve entry processes with the use of the international travel portal.

SIMILARLY, global airlines have called for development and deployment of rapid, accurate, affordable, easy-to-operate, scalable and systematic COVID-19 testing for all passengers before departure. The measure, as an alternative to quarantine and multiple tests, is to re-establish global air connectivity and erase current traveller apathy.

A traveller that just returned from Germany, Sunday Ajisafe, claimed there was subtle fraud in the mandatory testing scheme.

He said, “I arrived in Abuja about two weeks ago. We have been made to understand that we would have to pay N48, 000 for another COVID-19 test on arrival, after which we can retrieve our passports. I paid at the airport and was referred to a laboratory in Abuja. Three days later, I went to the given address and realised that it was a wrong address. I searched to no avail. That is how I lost N48, 000.

“Because my return trip was approaching, I went into a government approved laboratory to do the test. There, I paid N50, 000. The result came out positive. I was shocked because I had no symptoms and I have been protecting myself as much as possible. As I was stepping out, one of the laboratory officials approached me and said he could ‘help’ with the status, if I could part with N25, 000. It was then I realised that it has become a business of some sort,” Ajisafe said.

A Dubai-bound traveller from Lagos was also confirmed positive for COVID-19, just days to departure.

“I have a valid entry visa to the UAE that was about to expire. That is where I work and have my family too. It was a desperate situation. I had reasons not to believe the latest result. More so, I have done a COVID-19 test earlier that came out negative. I later got a call from someone who offered to help edit the date of the old COVID-19 test. I paid some money and was able to fly,” the traveller said.

A travel consultant, Hakeem Olumegbon, said there were diverse stories of racketing in town and urged handling government officials to be committed.

Olumegbon said he had observed the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) unit issue two conflicting results to one person.

“She is one of our clients that was about to travel. She got a call that she tested positive. She was shattered. Before the end of the day, she got a mail, saying she was negative. So, which one should we believe of the two results from the same laboratory? From the government’s end, it is all messy.

“There are those that are all out to make money off the ineffectual system. Those ones are now selling fake test certificates to travellers that are desperate. I heard of a lab that did the COVID-19 test for just N15, 000. When it came out positive, the applicant didn’t believe the result and blamed it on the low fee that was charged. Things are that bad. The government has to do something about this urgently,” Olumegbon said.

In his reaction, the coordinator, Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Dr. Sani Aliyu, said the PTF was working to make the process more streamlined and easier to navigate.

Aliyu described the travel portal as Nigeria’s innovation for controlling the spread of COVID-19 and making travel possible and seamless for passengers. He appealed to passengers to bear with the task force and report any issues, using the portal and to support them in flattening the curve.

“With an operation of this scope and skill, there are bound to be issues that will arise. This is an IT system, it is not perfect; we are human, talk less of computers and especially with the travel portal that is relatively new. It was immediately implemented because of the pressure for opening of the international airports. Without the travel portal, we probably would still have been struggling to open up the international airports safely.”

SINCE the reopening of the nation’s airspace to international flights and launch of the international travel portal, statistics have shown that over 27,000 passengers arrived in the country through the Lagos and Abuja airports.

According to the PTF, over 18,000 came in through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, while it was a little over 9,000 in Abuja. Of this number of passengers, 99.8 per cent had negative COVID-19 PCR test results.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Finchglow Travels, Bankole Bernard, said the development was not unexpected of a system where public officers were the most corrupt, coupled with the challenges of being a developing country.

Bernard said the COVID-19 travel protocols were work-in-progress; hence, travellers should complain less but keep exposing fraudulent practices to change the situation.

On the chaotic situation at airports, Secretary General of the Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative (ASRTI), a think-tank group of the aviation sector, Group Capt. John Ojikutu (rtd), queried the essence of inbound passengers negative test certification on arrival going for another test.

Ojikutu said: “The PTF must begin to give considerations to providing test laboratories at the international airports to entrust confidence to Nigerians and foreigners. The present international passenger traffic is just about 25 per cent from the figures recently released and I don’t think we need more than Lagos and Abuja to be operating for now, so that we can optimise the available skilled manpower and equipment.”

He added that it should also not cost the government so much to provide forms for all foreign airlines on international flights to Nigeria, to distribute to their passengers before boarding or while onboard.

He said that had been the practice for the declaration of foreign exchange carried by both Nigerians and foreigners, adding that the objective is to ease passengers’ experience and comply with International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) guidelines.

World airlines, under the aegis of International Air Transport Association (IATA), have also pledged to work through ICAO and with health authorities to implement uniform testing procedures as quick solution to the problems faced by travellers.

Lack of uniform testing procedure is already causing global air travellers a lot of discomforts, despite the add-on cost of multiple checks. COVID-19 tests cost an average Nigerian traveller about N150, 000 for three sessions on a return trip.

IATA’s Director General and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Alexandre de Juniac, said the key to restoring the freedom of mobility across borders is systematic COVID-19 testing of all travellers before departure.

BY  Chinedu Eze 

The Rector of International Aviation College, Ilorin and former acting Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Benedict Adeyileka has said two key ways the federal government can revamp the aviation industry are to overhaul the policies that guide the sector and to ensure the implementation of those policies.

Adeyileka in an interview with THISDAY said the Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASA) and other policies formulated in the past seemed to have given foreign airlines advantage in their operations into the country, adding that recently policies introduced by government under the current administration are beginning to protect domestic airlines. He therefore urged government to overhaul the old, existing policies to further protect domestic operators in order to help the industry grow and create more jobs for the citizens.

“Policy is very important in moving the aviation industry forward. The Minister of Aviation and the Director-General of NCAA have the power to overhaul policy regulations. We had policy formulation on cabotage, empowerment of Nigerian airlines and General Aviation among others, but as far as I am concerned, there were good policies we had in 2012 or 2013.

“I remember I had to go and defend some of those policies in public hearing at the National Assembly when I was acting Director General of NCAA. There are lots of policies we can put in place to encourage the local carriers,” he said. Adeyileka who is aircraft engineer said Nigerian carriers are not supposed to pay duties on aircraft spares, saying that if there is a standing policy on that, the Minister of Aviation would not be reverting to Customs every year to renew waivers on tariffs on aircraft and spares importation.

“For instance, this issue of duties paid by airline operators, from time immemorial in United Kingdom, they don’t have that for spare parts for airline operators, they give you what we call end user number, which is to ensure that the spare parts you are bringing in, you are to use it on your aircraft and not to resell it to another operator. “The customs in that country will check the spare part critically, look into your record in order to verify that the parts are installed in the right aircraft you claimed you wanted to use them for. The duty is granted to airline with valid Air Operators’ Certificate (AOC) only,” Adeyileka also said.

On the effect of coronavirus on the aviation industry, he said that concerned authorities in the industry should be more flexible with COVID-19 protocol in order to encourage more people to fly, especially on international destinations. “There are some countries that do not require Covid-19 test as condition to come to their country, so authorities at the airports should not insist that passengers should have the test before travelling to those destinations.

“For you to go to the UK you don’t need to do this Covid-19 test, they have their own procedures. I am not saying that is right. When you put something in place, it has to be user-friendly. When we travelled to Brazil, we did Covid-19 test. They didn’t ask us for it when we got to the country. We don’t have to go through the rigorous experience we went through in Nigeria.

“Go to Turkey, you will get your Covid-19 test done at the airport and result out within two hours. You don’t even need to wait for your result, you will get it on your phone, but coming to Nigeria, it is a tough one. Though, the government wants to ensure that we are 100 per cent safe, but when you tighten the regulation too much, you are also encouraging backdoor approach,” the Rector said.

The UN refugee chief on Monday lambasted countries which close their doors to desperate migrants and Europe’s “shameful” refusal to allow migrants stranded at sea to disembark quickly.

Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said migrants and refugees around the world were continuing to take dangerous routes towards safety and opportunity.

The solution for their destination countries, Grandi told the opening of the United Nations Refugee Agency’s main annual meeting, “cannot be to close the door”.

“We cannot allow xenophobic reactions, only meant to draw facile consensus and electoral votes, to shape responses to challenges that are complex, but manageable.”

He warned of “the dangerous lines of thinking emerging in some of the world’s richest countries — ‘externalising’ asylum beyond a country’s borders — violate international law, put the lives of the most vulnerable in jeopardy and constitute precedents which threaten asylum globally.”

In particular, he highlighted the case of 27 migrants stranded in the Mediterranean Sea for nearly 40 days on a Danish freighter before it was finally permitted to dock in Italy earlier this month.

“States failed to live up to their responsibilities. As a European, I find it shameful that it took more than one month to disembark just 27 people.”

The Italian stressed that “people will continue to flee unless the root causes of their flight are solved.”

“Reducing search and rescue capacity, or impeding those who engage to save others, or pushing back people without due process, will not stop people from moving; it will only lead to more deaths and the further erosion of refugee protection.”

‘Deep disappointment’ Grandi meanwhile welcomed the European Commission’s recent proposal for a new Pact on Migration and Asylum, calling it “a unique opportunity… to set out clearly how responsibilities will be shared”.

In an address coloured by the complexities of the Covid-19 pandemic, Grandi also voiced “deep disappointment” at the low numbers of refugees being resettled from precarious situations to third countries.

“In 2019, fewer than 64,000 refugees were resettled — less than one quarter of one percent of the world’s refugees, in a constantly declining trend,” he said.

The United States, which traditionally has resettled the most refugees, has slashed those numbers under President Donald Trump, offering to take in a record low of just 15,000 refugees next year — down from more than 100,000 under Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama.

Grandi also warned of the deteriorating situation in Africa’s Sahel.

He said he had recently visited the region, which he described as “the theatre of one of the most worrying situations — a political, security and humanitarian crisis which has displaced millions.”

“Few situations have shocked me as much — the violence, the brutality, including horrifying stories of gruesome murders of parents in front of their children.”

In the past year alone, more than 600,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in the region, thousands of schools have been destroyed and thousands of women raped, Grandi said.

“We need to restore a sense of urgency in the Sahel response,” he insisted.

An indigenous firm, Free On Board, is to build a N250 million packaging factory at the Lagos Airport for goods and logistics, in partnership with the Handling Company (NAHCO) and other international partners.

The factory, according to the firm’s promoter and Chief Executive Officer, Mr Oluwajimi Adebakin, will create a window, Brand Nigeria, which will ensure proper labelling and packaging of any product intended for export.

Adebakin, who made this known to reporters, said discussions were at a final stage with NAHCO for the commencement of the packaging project as the site has been secured.

Describing Brand Nigeria as a national assignment, he said the project’s objective is to ensure that exported products meet international standards. 

The FOB boss said the firm will offer credit to motivate Nigerians interested in export business.

“This is why we believe that 100 tonnes of cargo on a daily basis is achievable in a nation of over 260 million people if only 10million of us play an active role in this endeavor, we will be doing more than 100 tonnes a day and we see an opportunity to reduce unemployment drastically across the country.”

He called for a subsidy for the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to ensure that charges were waived on goods to encourage exporters, adding that growing export business remains part of the solutions towards a diversified economy.

Adebakin urged exporters to register with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council for easy movement of goods.

One of the activities seriously affected by the COVID-19 pandemic was the 2020 Pilgrimage to the Kingdomof Saudi Arabia, which restricted visits from residents of other countries. 

But as part of plans for 2021 Hajj, Muslim Faithful in Nigeria have begun to devise ways of saving funds for the trip. In tune with this, the National Hajj Commission alongside other stakeholders, are drawing up modalities that will make it easier for intending pilgrims to visit the Holy Cities of Madina and Mecca.

Hajj Commission officials converged in Kano state to inform the people and inaugurate the scheme.

Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje is delighted at the development and pledges to create an enabling environment for pilgrims from his state.

From now on, muslim faithful all over the country who key in to the initiative can start saving for an opportunity to visit the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to perform pilgrimage.

By Laurence Frost

PARIS (Reuters) - Global airlines warned on Tuesday that the coronavirus-stricken industry was on course to burn through another $77 billion in cash in the second half of 2020, calling on governments to renew expiring wage support programmes.

“The issue now is that aid, particularly the wage subsidies, is starting to be withdrawn,” Brian Pearce, chief economist at the International Air Transport Association (IATA), told reporters.

Airlines consumed $51 billion in cash in the second quarter as the pandemic brought global travel to a near-standstill, the industry body said.

The call for increased support came as U.S. airlines begin furloughs of more than 32,000 workers amid fading hopes for a new federal bailout package. Wage support programmes are also tapering off in Europe and elsewhere.

Whereas the withdrawal of subsidies makes sense for sectors in recovery, IATA warned of further airline bankruptcies in the northern hemisphere winter as the collapse in revenue continues to dwarf cost savings. The average carrier now has cash for 8.5 months of operations, Pearce said.

“We’re facing some tough winter months for airlines when cash flows are always seasonally weak,” he said. “We’re looking (at) airlines getting into trouble if not failing without either further government support or (being) able to access capital markets for more cash.”

Airlines are pushing for a global system of pre-flight COVID-19 tests to replace quarantines and travel restrictions they blame for worsening the travel collapse.

The Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) has said that the Lagos light-rail under construction is expected to begin full operation in the year 2022.

Mrs Abimbola Akinajo, the Managing Director of LAMATA announced this in a statement on Tuesday in Lagos.

Akinajo was quoted as giving the assurance after a meeting with contractors and consultants handling the Lagos Light-Rail Mass Transit (LRMT) Red and Blue Line projects.

She said that the meeting was convened to reiterate the already established positions on the timeline for the delivery of the rail lines project.

According to her, the Red Line is one of seven rail lines identified in the state’s Strategic Transport Master Plan for the mass movement of commuters and reduce road congestion that has characterised the state.

The LAMATA MD underscored the importance of the 24-kilometre stretch between Oyingbo and Agbado, representing the first phase of the 37-kilometre rail project.

She said that the railway was one of the effective ways through which cities deal with traffic congestion.

“The Red Line is supposed to be a quick win because it will share tracks with the Nigerian Railway Corporation on its Lagos – Ibadan rail corridor.

“There will be no delays, no budget or cost overrun and there will not be any shift in the delivery date.

“Our meeting is just to take stock of what we have done so far since this project started and to re-emphasise that there is no room for slippage in the delivery of the Red Line.

Akinajo explained that in order to ensure train movement is not obstructed, four overpasses and three pedestrian bridges would be constructed to eliminate level crosses and pedestrian access on the rail tracks.

“There will be a guarantee of unhindered movement of the train, which will have eight minutes headway, whilst ensuring safety by eliminating vehicular and pedestrian interactions along the rail line.

“Our projection is that the first phase of the Red line will carry between 350,000 and 400,000 passengers daily.’’

She said that the government would not compromise on the agreed timelines, adding that funding for the project “is ready and secured’’ as there will not be any funding issue.

The statement also quoted the Director of Rail Transportation, LAMATA, Mr Olasunkanmi Okusaga, as urging contractors and consultants on the projects to work together to meet the set target date.

Okusaga said that challenges should be quickly reported and resolved in a way that would be beneficial to the timely delivery of the projects.

By Wole Oyebade

• FAAN remits N8.7 billion in six years

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), has blamed unviable airports scattered nationwide for its poor earnings and revenue shortfall over the years, now in excess of N65 billion.    Management of FAAN, while appearing before the House of Representatives’ Committee on Finance, in Abuja, reaffirmed that a total of 18 out of the 22 airports under its operations are unviable.    The Guardian earlier reported that at least 17 of the 20 airports owned and managed by the Federal Government were unviable and operated at losses for three years on the bounce.

  
Except the trio of Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, and Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA), Rivers State, none of the other 17 airports has sufficient revenue to cover the cost of operations alone.
  
Investigations showed that additional funding from high-traffic Lagos and Abuja airports’ excess revenue to the tune of N26.1 billion cushioned the operational cost deficits incurred by the unviable airports in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
 
Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Finance, James Faleke, at the inquiry session demanded the rationale for a total of N65 billion shortfalls in the revenue expected from FAAN cumulatively for the past six years.
  
Faleke said such revenue shortfalls, as against the Finance Ministry’s expectations, had been responsible for the abysmally low budget performance by the Federal Government.
  
The lawmaker, who chronicled government’s revenue expectations from FAAN since 2014, observed that the agency had not even been able to meet at least 25 per cent of the projections, which meant that government intentions to provide amenities to the public would also be made impossible due to the default in remittance.

  
While the government was expecting total remittances of N74.325 billion from FAAN between 2014 and 2019, only a sum of N8.865 billion was remitted.
  
Faleke reminded the management of the extant laws on financial regulations and revenue management, which he alleged that FAAN had consistently breached with impunity, noting that the public finance revenue management law only allows government businesses to retain 25 per cent of revenue.
  
In his defence, the Managing Director of FAAN, Capt. Rabiu Yadudu, said the special protocols in making airports comply with recommended standards, imposed a duty on the management to often make prompt reinvestment into the airports by way of upgrade, maintenance and repairs in making the airports serviceable at all times and at the different seasons.
  
Yadudu said those challenges requiring urgent compliance to international standards and recommended best practices made it a little difficult to exclusively remit revenue ahead.
  
“FAAN is subsidising 18 airports that are not viable to keep them operational. It’s either we compromise on standards or comply with remittances,” he said.
  
FAAN owns and manages all the public airports on behalf of the Federal Government. Among them are 20 that are directly owned by the Federal Government, and four state-owned airports.

  
A fact-sheet of revenue and expenditure of the 20 federal airports and FAAN Headquarters in the last three years, obtained by The Guardian, showed huge revenue shortfalls and deficits across the board.
  
For instance, the Kaduna International Airport that was upgraded during the 2017 closure of Abuja airport has in the last three years pooled a total of N1.027 billion in generated revenue. Of the sum, N716.7 million was collected. However, the expenditure was in excess of N4.41 billion, leaving a deficit of N3.69 billion.
  
The Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, did not fare better. The airport in 2017, 2018 and 2019 pooled a total of N8.28 billion in generated revenue. Collected was N7.16 billion. Its expenditure was a total of N9.6 billion, leaving a shortfall of N2.44 billion.
  
The Kastina Airport managed to rake in a total of N250.8 million in generated revenue in three years, out of which only N42.1 million was collected. Its cost of operations was, however, put at N1.58 billion, leaving a deficit balance of N1.54 billion.

Similarly, Sokoto Airport had a total of N725.7 million generated revenue, out of which N400.1 million was collected. The cost of operation was in excess of N2.71 billion, which gave a shortage of N2.31 billion.

In the South, Ibadan airport in three years raked in a total of N349.2 million in generated revenue. N244.9 million was collected. Expenditure amounts to N1.39 billion and deficit totalled N1.14 billion.    Ilorin International Airport made a total of N437.1 million generated revenue in three years. A total of N264.2 million was collected. Expenditure was in excess of N2.453 billion, giving a shortfall of N2.19 billion.    Having listened to the defense by FAAN MD, the legislators still insisted in casting a glance at the financial records of FAAN, especially on its revenue and expenditures, to be able to appreciate whatever the compelling reason for not meeting up with remittance targets.    Yadudu and his Finance and Accounts crew are expected in the hallowed chamber of the lower house, in a fortnight to shed more light on the contentious issue.